TheOpenThread: Louisville Cardinals vs. UConn Huskies

Against Michigan State in November, and in South Bend on Saturday, UConn showed that they're at their best when they play against good teams. That's good news, because UConn is hosting Louisville tonight, and Louisville is a very, very good team. In fact, some people, like the voters in the Associated Press Top 25, might even say they're the best team in the country. The Cardinals are 14-1, and that one loss came to Duke, another team with a strong claim to the top spot in the nation. Oh, and the Duke loss came without center Gorgui Deng, who has posted double-doubles in three of his four games since returning from a wrist injury.

UConn's main attack won't be up front though, it'll be their backcourt, which is the only one in the Big East that can match -- and possibly exceed -- UConn's. Peyton Siva and Russ Smith will set the pace and lead the scoring for the Cardinals respectively, and should give Shabazz Napier and Ryan Boatright all they can handle.

I fully believe that UConn can win this game, but it will not be easy. Not only will Napier and Boatright have to be their usually stellar selves, but the rest of the Huskies will have to raise their games as well. If the Tyler Olander that made an appearance against Notre Dame is still around it'll be a huge help, so will consistently play from Enosch Wolf, whose recent play has been as encouraging as his stupid fouls are frustrating. Perhaps most importantly DeAndre Daniels needs to be good DeAndre tonight.

The game tips at 7 p.m. on ESPN. This is your OpenThread. Go Huskies and remember, take the stairs because escalators are for cowards.